Harness-bridle.



G. L. FORMAN.

HARNESS BRIDLB.

APPLICATION FILED rms. 1o, 1910.

1,073,973. Patented sept.23,1913.

2 SHBETShSHEET 1.

G. L. FORMAN.

HARNESS BRIDLE.

APPLIOATION rum rms. 1o. 1910A 1,073,973. Patented Sept. 23, 19.13.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

GEORGE L. FORMAN, or LoursVlLLn, KENTUCKY.

HARNESS-BRIDLE.

Leraars.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 23, 1913.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that l, GEORGE L. FORMAN, a citizen of the United States, residing); at Louisville, in the county of Jefferson and State of Kentucky, have invented new and useful improvements in l'larness-llridles, of which the following' is a specification.

rlhis invention relates to certain iinprioif'einents in harness bridles and has for its particular purpose the provision of. a simple and inexpensive bridle wherein the winkers or blinds are positively and effectively held from the eyes of the aniinal at all tinies. This purpose is accomplished according to the present invention by the eofpe ative action of a brace which extends across the brow of the anirnal and has rearwardly and inwardly bent ends attached to the winlters or blinds, and at its center is provid-ed with a loop or eye which rises therefrom, and a front which extends through the loop or eye and is so related to the brace that it will pull the body of the latter in toward the center of the `brow and transmit through said body to said ends a strain which effectively holds the ends in their rearwardly and inwardly bent position, wherein they force the outer or front ends of the winkers or blinds outward, away frein the head off the animal.

The object is further accomplished by ecrtain details inthe construct-ion of parts, as will be hereinafter seen.

In the accompanying drawings .l have eX- eniplified the present invention with various detail constructions of braces, and I shall describe these constructions of braces with particularity, but it is to be understood that the exemplified .forms are merely illustrative of some of inany various constructions which niay be inade within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the claims, and that lf do not restrict myself to the detail foi-ins illustrated and particularly described but reserve the right to change the same in inany and apparently widely different respects, within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the claims.

ln these drawings Figure l is a side elevation of a bridle, with my preferred form of winker brace. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same. Fig. 3 a perspective View of the preferred form of winker brace, showingV the loop in dotted outline to disclose the conncction of the bracemcmbers with each other.

Fie'. et is a detail perspective View Of lll@ loop. Fic'. 5 is a Vertical section on the line .ri-m5 of ll ig'. 2. Fie'. 0 is a front view of the bridle provided with my improved winkel` braciine; nfeans. Fin'. 7 is a detail perspective View ot' a modified forni of brace, with parts separated. llig. 8 is a perspectiif'e vview of part of still another modified form of brace. Fin. tl is a vertical section on the line tlm-t) of Fin'. e, and Fie', l() is a detail part. ot the saine brace.

'.fhe saine cl aractcrs of reference designate the sanie parts in the several views.

',lhe crown l, cheek-pieces 2, winkers or blinds Z3, and throat-latch 4f; need not diflcr in any particular 'from these several parts of hcad stalls or bridlcs as now employed. Similarly the brow-band or front-piece 5 may be of ordinary forni but it hears a definite relation to the winltcr-ln'ace in order that it may cooperate with the latter in the performance of its fonction in the present im'cntion, as will be hereinafter fully eX- plained.

'.l`be preferred 'torni of winlicr brace is composed of a plurality of inelnbers a, (2.1, a?, fr", cach cnt to a shape which comprises a body I() having' integral widened ends ll and f2 extending` in opposite directions from the plane of the body. rlhe strip o is superimposed on the strip and the strip o1 is superimposed on the strip ff, and the strips fr and al, and also the strips n: and (r3, are arranged with the cdpjcs of their portions f'f abutting cach other as shown by the line i3, and said portions ff of the strips n, and 01 are .sci nlratcd from thc similar portions 0f the strips 2 and fr bv a filling piece lll havine` thinned lower ends as shown at 15. This forms a brace of double thickness, the parts of which inay be out to shape. whereby the disadvantages incident to bending' the brace to its shape while wet, are overcome. lt will be understood of course that the strips are suitably stitched together and it will be noted that the described :torni of the niembers of the brace provides at. the center of the brace an upwardly projecting: extension of definite thickness and length which pres sents a substantial bearing surif'ace 1G for the lower edge of the brow-band 5, this bearing beinel composed of the plane ends of the parts il and filling); piece lff. It will also be noted that the sides of said parts ll are curved and merge into the upper surface of the bodies l0. and that, thc inner and outer edges of the parts l2 are curved on lines of different radii and merge into the upper and lower edges of said bodies. rlhese parts 12 are also thinned toward their free` ends as shown. y

A loop formed of leather or other suitable flexible material, bent to shape, has its end's f 18 and 18a arranged over the junction of the parts 11 and stitched or. otherwise secured to said parts, as indicated in dotted outline in Fig.' 8. The material of whichthisloop iis formed. is of s-uch length as to pro-vide an eye 1:9 abovethe, shoulderl or bea-ring 16 through which the front or browband 5 loosely eXtendsandby which the latter is connected to the brace. V

In practice the brace extends around the brow of the animalwith. its ends 12. ar!- raznged rearward of its body or limbs and inclined toward each other corresponding to the outward inclinationwhich they are intended tolgiveftlie win-hers or blind-s. llllhen cut to shape they maintain their form even after they have been wet, and hence correct to a very large extent the tendency of the winkers or blinds to flo-p back and forth. lt is important, however, that the center of the brace be drawn in toward the brow, inY order that its tendency to protrude at this point may be corrected, and this tendency is corrected according to the present invention by the brow band 5, which is shown as extending through the loop and making said' band of such length with relation to the length of the brace as to draw the latter in at itsA j center to the brow of the animal and force the ends 12y inclinato-ril-y outward, so as effectively to hold the winkers.- or blinds away from the eyesofy the ani-mal. rlhe upwardly projecting central' portion. of the brace is highly desirable for the reasonthat it provides a predetermined: space between the bodies. of the front or brow-band and the brace, aifording a: perfect fit without any tensionon either the brace` or the brow-band, and the bearing which supports the browband in the loop' acts als a stop to movement of the brow-band upon the stitches,V

thus contributing to the durability of thebridle` In theforniv shown in. Figs. 8., 9 an-d 101, the filling piece 14 is omitted; the contiguous ends (110) of the-front strips or menibers (designated 100) are thinned and over-v lap each other the rear stri-ps or members (marked 100g) have their ends 110a spaced apart and. thinned ,i thelfoophas its rear limb or member, 180, disposed between anid in contact with the ends 1:16a" of the rear members, andalso inv contact with the rear sur-- faces of theV endsI 11G-ort the front. members,` while its front lim-b or -meinber 18d res-tsV against the front faces of the ends 110 at the,v

. junction of the lattergand a separate piece or strip (1&0): is disposed rearward of the end 180 of the' loop and over the junction-103i central raised portion and laterally projectlingv limbs' so' as to' conform to the shape of the .members 100 at the junction of the latter, its limbshowever being comparatively short and being thinned and conforming to the thinned ends 110a of the rear members,

`I against which said limbs are arranged. The several parts referred to are stitched, or

otherwise suitably secured together..V

It is not wholly essential that. the ends 12 or 120' of4 the bracex be integral with the bodies 1.0 or 100- thereof or that two sepa.- rately-formed limbs be employed,v it being withinv the purview of' the invention in its broader aspects to forni such ends separate fromthe body parts andy of form` adapted to be secu-red tothe winlters or blind-s, and to form the body part of a continuous piece eX- tendingV from one of said endsv to the'other. A `form of; such brace iisr exemplified' in- F ig. 7, wherein a body-part, marked 210, is provided with. ends, 212, of separate formati-on, the body extending between the ends and connecting the latter with'each other. Each endco-mprises parts l2a and 12b arranged at an angle with each-other, and of diiferent widths The parts 12a are intended for attachment to the winlers. or blinds and the parts 12b are securedto the ends of the body 210. ln use, the end portions 212are`bent, suitably adjacent to the place of their connection to the bodies, at 12.@` for example.

ln the forin.- shown inlfig. 7, the body/210 is made in two layers,y alo and,a20,fbetween the ends of whichthe portions 12b of the parts 212 are inserted; and these, two layers' are stitched together except at aV place' about midway the length thereof, where theyV are' left free to form apocket or space for the end-18a of a flexible strip, which is stitched or otherwise suitablyV secured i-n'said pocket ors-pace and which strip isof length adapting it to form a loop` arranged above the body of the'bracev fior thereception of the brow-band or front-piece 5 as aforesaid. The end 18b of vsaidy piece-,after the browbandv has been inserted through the loop or eye, is stitched or otherwise suitably secured to th'ebody of the brace. It is apparent that the layers am and @20, either or both-f, maybe widened at their longitudinal centers, or elsewhere intheir lengthtok provide a space between the brow-band and the body o fV thebraceand also, if desired, a bearing for the brow-bandi, protecting the stitches against wear.

F rom the foregoing' the construction, opera-tion and advantages of my invention will bel understood',-Y and it will be seen that they invention may be embodied in various different. detai'l constructions, some ot which` have been illustrated?, withoutv departing from. thev spirit thereof or the" scope: of. the ,Subj-oiinedI claims,i

ico'

Having now described my invention what I believe to be new and desire to cure by Letters Patent, is

l. In av bridle, the combination with winkel-s and a brace having ends which are secured to the winkers, of a brow band and connections between the brow band and the center' oi the brace, the relative lengths oi the brow band and brace being such that the brow band will pull the center oi' the brace in toward the brow of the animal and throw the ends out.

2. A winker brace having a flexible body, provided with laterally projecting ends to engage the winlers and a widened portion between its ends, said widened portion having a squared upper end, a loop connected to the body in proximity to the widened portion thereof, and a brow band which extends through the loop and bears upon the squared upper end et' the` body, the brow band and brace being 0i. relative lengths such that the brow band will pull the center' of the brace in toward the brow of the animal and throw the ends out.

3. A winker brace having a 'flexible body and ends which are wider than the body and bent abruptly from the plane thereof and which extend rearward of the body and inclinatorily toward each other, said body curvingl longitudinally from each end to its center with its center rearward oit the plane of the contiguous parts, a loop at said center arranged above the edge ot' the brace, and a brow band which extends through said loop and holds the parts of the brace in the position stated.

et. A winker brace comprising a plurality of parts each having an end portion arranged at an angle with its remaining portion and of greater width than the same and adapted to be secured to a winker, means for connecting Said parts with each other, a brow band above the connecting means, and a loop encircling the brow band and connecting the same with said connecting means, said brow band being of such length that. it will pull the center of the brace in toward the brow of the animal and throw the ends out.

5. A winker brace comprising a plurality of members each having a `flexible body provided with ends projecting laterally in opposite directions therefrom, two oit said ends adapted to be secured to winkers and the other two arranged in proximity to each other, a flexible strip secured to the brace in proximity to the latter ends, said strip being bent to form an eye or loop, and a brow band which extends through the loop or eye and is adapted to bend the brace inward at the center' and throw the first mentioned ends outward.

6. A winker brace comprising superimposed flat members secured together and provided with widened ends which project laterally therefrom, a loop secured to the brace at the center of the latter, and a brow band which extends through the loop and is adapted to pull the center oi the brace in toward the brow o'i' the animal and throw the ends thereof outward.

7 A winkel' brace composed of superimposed flat members at each side oit' the longitudinal center thereof, each of said members having a flexible body provided with ends projecting laterally in opposite directions therefrom, said members relatively so arranged that one laterally projecting end of each of the same will be in proximity to each other and at the center of the brace, the other ends thereof being adapted for attachment to the winkel-s, a strip having its ends secured to the brace in proximity te the junction of the tiret-mentioned ends, said strip bent to form a loop or eye above said junction, and a brow band which extends through the loop or eye and is adapted to bend the brace inward at said junction and throw the winker ends of the brace outward.

8. A winker brace composed of superimposed pairs ol llat members at each side ot the longitudinal center thereof, each of said members having a flexible body provided with ends projecting laterally in opposite directions theret'rom, said members relatively so arranged that one laterally projecting end of each of the same will be in proximity to each other at the center of the brace, thc other ends thereot| being adapted :t'or attachment to the winkers, a strip having its ends secured to the brace and arranged upon the 't'ront and rear surfaces of the latter respectively and over the junction of the first-mentioned ends, said strip forming a loop or eye above the edge or' the ends of said junction, and a brow band which extends through the loop or eye and is adapted to bend the brace inward at said junction and throw the winker ends of the brace outward.

In testimony whereot I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE L. FORMAN.

iVitnesses RAY M. McGrnA'rr-r, Hnnamx Fon'rwixonnn.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

